Firmware refers to software that is embedded in hardware. It stores the most basic parameters of hardware devices in the computer system, in order to provide the most basic and direct hardware control to the system. In the server, it is also necessary to provide hardware control to the system through the firmware. In order to enable the server firmware to provide new functionality or to solve problems associated with the previous version, the server firmware needs to be updated to keep the server in a more stable and secure state.
Existing firmware updating methods may be referred to the schematic structural diagrams shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. The Baseboard Management Controller (BMC) is shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, which is a dedicated service processor usually used to monitor physical variables of the server such as the temperature, humidity, power supply voltage, fan speed, communication parameters and operation system functions, to enable functions such as diagnostics, console support, configuration management, hardware management and troubleshooting. In the architecture shown in FIG. 1, an image file for updating the firmware is stored in the BMC memory 104, and the image file must be loaded into the firmware memory 102 through the BMC 103 and the South Bridge chip 101 to complete the firmware update, so that the updating process must rely on the server's operation to be completed, however, updating the firmware when the server is in operation may affect other functions when the server executes. In the architecture shown in FIG. 2, an image file for updating the firmware is stored in the BMC memory 203, and the switching circuit 204 is connected to the South Bridge chip 201 when the firmware is not updated. When firmware update is needed, the switching circuit 204 is switched to be connected to the BMC 202. Then, the image file stored in the BMC memory 203 may be loaded into the main firmware memory 205 and the backup firmware memory 206 through the switching circuit 204, to complete the update process for the server firmware. This method must depend on the completion of the switching the components connected to the switching circuit 204 between the Southbridge 201 and the BMC 202, relying on an additional switching circuit. The hardware cost needs to be increased. Therefore, there is a need to improve the existing server firmware update solution.